Elephants
The''' Elephants''' are major characters in Darkwood ''that live in the Swamp Cottage. They're a family of four; three children (one of which is missing) and a mother. They're dressed in full protective suits (Hazmat suits reminiscent of the World War 2 era) with breathing hoses, and oxygen tanks. Their strange appearance created by the masks is likely the reason for their nicknames, as the Polish-made MUA mask is oftenly nicknamed "Elephant" due to its design. The mother is a fierce survivor, and somewhat of a shut-in; she forbids her children from going outside, talking to strangers, or breathing any of the 'contaminated air.' She herself argues that said air is the cause of the mutations of all the other inhabitants of the region (she claims too that the Protagonist's muteness is caused by such a miasma). She also claims that the 'book,' quite possibly a reference to the bible, will save them. She exhibits aggressive behaviors too (such as hitting her kids) which suggests her time spent inside the house has driven her mad. The Cripple will first point the Protagonist towards the Elephants in the Swamp Cottage, by suggesting that they have Oxygen Tanks. Before the player will be able to meet the Elephants face to face, however, they will need to repair the generator outside their house, requiring 10 scrap metal. This, however, is made trivial, due to the large number of bear traps set up all around their home. Once, fixed, the Elephants will thank you and open the door. Upon speaking to them, the mother Elephant will give the player a quest. One of her sons ran away in pursuit of his hobby of 'collecting mushrooms,' and you are required to bring him back alive and well. The Child can be found in the Mushroom Glade behind a locked door in Mushroom Granny's house. Upon retrieving him, the mother Elephant will take him into another room and he will disappear from the game. The player is rewarded with an Oxygen Tank for their efforts. It is revealed that the mother of the Elephants is the paranoid daughter of Mushroom Granny, and the wife of the Thief. This also means that she is the mother of The Three. They are three of her seven sons. One of her sons is dead and his decomposing corpse is sitting in the Old Shed. Epilogue The Elephants, if they are without the Child, will burn to death in their cottage without him. He will try to come and save his loved ones from the fire, to no avail. :See Transcript Dialogue Greeting * First Encounter 'The air is filled with a suffocating, sweet odor of rot.' 'The woman is wearing a heavy, ruined coat. Her voice is supressed by the cracked gas mask she's wearing.' 'Two children hide behind the woman. The younger one eyes me nervously, cowering in fear. The older one just stands there, motionless.' 'The younger child pierces me with its eyes. The steamed visor of his gas mask betrays his rapid breath.' 'The older child's grasp on his mother's hand tightens. He does not lift his gaze from one of the hut's walls.' 'The woman stares at me intensely through the cracked mask.' 'The woman stares at the floor. Her greasy, black hair drops down on her mask.' 'She lowers her head even more, as if observing the dead flies stuck to her coat.' * With the Child 'The woman leans towards the boy.' 'The boy stares at the ground in silence.' 'Marcinek walks towards the woman, nervously plucking at his old, torn sweater.' 'The two kids standing behind their mother flinch. The woman grabs the boy's hand and disappears in the hallway. After a while, she comes back with an oxygen tank.' 'The tank is a little rusty, but it seems intact. On the side, I can see some unintelligible scribblings. The valve opens with a little resistance, but I don't hear the hiss of air. It's empty.' 'She pushes my hand away from the valve and closes it hastily.' Showing Items * Photo of a Road 'The woman stares into the photo, hypnotized.' * A Photo of Three Boys 'The woman takes the photo and freezes.' * Photo of a Woman with a Child and an Old Lady The woman silently hands me back the photo.'' Gossip * The rhyme The youngest child, hidden behind the woman's back until now, finally finds the courage to make a small step towards me. A faint voice can be heard. The woman smacks the boy in the back of his head. The punch is so hard, the hood of his rubber cloak lands on his mask's visor. * The blessed child The woman rests her hands on the oxygen tanks of the children standing beside her. * The Three * If the player completes Piotrek's quest * If the player gets killed in the Train Wreck dream Trivia * Taking the Child back to the Elephants is not required for obtaining an oxygen tank, but finding him and hearing his song is. (because his song gives you the code to the chest in the Old Shed, near the Elephants home if you follow the flower trail.) * The Oxygen Tank given to the player is completely empty, though the mother Elephant insists its full. It's likely that she's breathing the same polluted air as everyone else. * The room that the Elephants are not in at the Swamp Cottage will be locked, likely keeping the Child there. * The mother mentions that she has another son which left, and supplies them with the oxygen they breathe. If the player follows the trail of flowers to the Old Shed and uses the code (clued to by the Child) to open its locked door, they will find a body holding an Oxygen Tank, with many more scattered around the area. This is likely the body of her child, "supplying" the air with his body. * One of her rumor refers to the spacecraft crashing in the junkyard. Category:Major characters